Tuesday, February 21, 2017

Defence Secretary James Mattis says US military not in Iraq ‘to seize anybody’s oil’

Nice try, but, tell that to BP. Unless, of course, the DOD doesn't consider the Brits our allies anymore. Dutch Royal Shell is there as well.

The 25-year technical service contract (TSC) (click here) was signed between SOC and BP (47.6%), PetroChina (46.4%) and the State Oil Marketing Organisation (6%), which sets out the framework to redevelop Rumaila and significantly increase production output.

The government of Iraq receives about 98% of the revenue from the 25-year TSC. In June 2010, the Rumaila Operating Organization was formed as a joint venture with these organizations, with the remit to operate and redevelop the field, with BP as the lead contractor. In September 2014, the TSC was extended by another five years to service the field through to 2034, with the target of producing 2.1 million barrels per day.

Today, more than 7,000 people from SOC, BP and PetroChina (93% of them Iraqi) and more than 22,000 contractors (most of them from Basra) support Rumaila’s operations.

BP has invested billions of dollars in new equipment and systems and put global experts to work. For example, 3D seismic surveying, with BP proprietary technology, has given an unprecedented geological understanding of 9,000 cubic kilometres of subsurface terrain. This investment in money and expertise has significantly increased revenues to Iraq, revenues that help Iraq re-build its economy. We believe Rumaila is a model of what can be achieved and it is now one of the largest producing fields in the world....

Rumaila is the second largest oil field in the world. It is what has funded the Iraqi treasury for decades and the corruption since 2003.

What I didn't know until I read this is that PetroChina is in Iraq along with Lukoil.